MUIN
LIGHT
The newsletter of
Muin Mound Grove, ADF
7188 Minoa Bridgeport Road
East Syracuse, NY 13057-9601
SAMHAIN 2000
Samhain
From "The Wheel of the Year at Muin Mound Grove, ADF" by Skip Ellison
Samhain, also known as "Samaain", "Hallowe'en", "All Hallows Eve", "Mallowmas", "All Saints Eve", "All Soul's Eve", "Sauin" on the Isle of Man, "Samhuinn" in Scots Gaelic, "Nos Galan-gaeof" (the Night of the Winter Calends) in Wales, and the "Witches' New Year" (contemporary), is traditionally celebrated on the night of October 31st. Samhain (pronounced Sowen) is one of the original Celtic fire festivals and means "Summer's End" -when the sun's power wanes, and the strength of the gods of darkness, winter, and the underworld grows great. The activities of the year have come to fruition in the harvest and the warmth of the summer had ended. The days grow shorter and the nights stretch longer. The earth falls into a winter sleep and reawakens in the spring when life renews itself. As Beltaine marks the beginning of summer, Samhain records its end.[1]
From the Coligny Calendar, the 1st century BCE calendar found in 1897 in Coligny France, we see that Samhain is the only one of the fire festivals listed. According to Alexei Kondratiev, the name given there was Trinouxtion Samonii. This implies that the festival was three days long,[2] although other authors tell us that the feast lasted seven days with the actual feast held in the middle.[3] Other authors, such as Anne Ross and James MacKillop, state that the name given in the calendar was Samonios. The calendar also tells us that to the Gauls, the period of dark precedes the period of light. This supports the idea that Samhain was the start of the year, being the start of the dark half of the year.[4]
To the Celts, any time or place that was a boundary, a liminal space, was very important. Whether a beach, between sea and land, a bog, between land and lake, or a time such as Samhain, between summer and winter, all were places where it was easy to move from one 'space' to another. As well as the laws of time and space being suspended at Samhain, so to were the laws of the tribe. People couldn't kill each other, but some of the lesser rules were relaxed at this time. Tradition tells us that people would dress up as the opposite sex and go about to their neighbors asking for treats. If treats were not given, then tricks, such as stopping up the chimney with peat or scattering the piles of hay, would be played on the homeowner.[5]
In
the Irish romance Fionn's Boyhood, the mystical nature of Samhain was
expressed. In one instance, there is
reverence to the Bean-Sidhe (Woman of the Hill), who would wail in prophetic
anticipation whenever anyone of royal blood was about to die and her shrieks
would be heard every Samhain. In
another mention, the entrances to the burial caves were left open at Samhain,
to allow the spirits of the heroes to come out for an airing; and the interiors
were illuminated until cockcrow the next morning. The spirits of the sacred kings of Bronze Age Ireland were
believed to have gone to "Caer Sidi," the Castle of Ariadne, (also
referred to as the "Spiral Castle.") where the Cauldron of
Inspiration was housed. There was
believed to be a revolving wheel before the door of the castle, and no one
could enter or exit until it was stilled.[6]
The
spiritual significance of Samhain is the most important though. This festival is regarded as both the New
Year and also the "Festival of the Dead." Death is merely a door, which opens to another life. It is believed that at this time of year the
souls of the dead can walk amongst the living.
On the night of Samhain, the doors are opened, the veil between life and
death is at its thinnest and the revolving wheel guarding the gates of the
Spiral Castle has stopped for a brief moment.
This is also the time when those souls still wandering this plane after
departing from life, can be called to the cauldron of re-birth to go to a place
of rest and learning.
Once
practice among the Celts was to set a place at the table for those who had
passed over during the year. This was
usually a plate taken first from all the foods present. In Wales, it was the custom to leave the
food outside for the wandering dead.
These foods, called 'bwyd cennad y
meirw', were left in the hopes that the dead would be satisfied and leave
the living in peace. Along with the
food, the people would make sure that the doors of the house were left unbolted
and special care was taken to prepare the hearth for the visit of the dead
before going to bed.[7]
Like
all of the traditional Celtic fire festivals, bonfires were lit on the highest
hills and the hearth fires were solemnly rekindled from the community fires
after having been extinguished the preceding night. Such rituals in pre-Christian times were overseen by the Druid
priests. The main fire in ancient
Ireland was kindled on the hill of Tlachtga.
This fire had to be lit by a spindle of oak wood turned on an oaken
block, by a wheel spun only in a sunwise direction.[8]
This night and all of the first week of November once blazed with ritual fires
- on which the early Celts symbolically burned all the frustrations and
anxieties of the preceding year.
This
was a time of coming together for the people of Ireland. The tribes would all send representatives to
the great assembly and feis (feast)
held at Tara every three years. During
this assembly, there would be horse racing, a fair and a large market place set
up. There would be rituals held to
celebrate the final harvest and a mourning ritual for the death of summer.[9] This was also a time of peace. At the assembly, warriors would keep their
swords sheathed and try to remain peaceful, although it wasn't always the case![10]
From
the tales, we learn that every year at Samhain, the 'monster' Aillen mac Midgna
would visit Tara and magically put the inhabitants to sleep. While they slept, he would light a fire that
would burn Tara to the ground. His
visits lasted until he was killed by Fionn. Fionn kept himself awake by pressing a magic spear, made by Len,
sword maker to the gods, to his forehead.[11] After everyone else was asleep, he was able
to defeat Aillen.
Another
tale tells us about how from the city of Cruacham in County Rosecommon, came
the triple headed monster, Aillén Tréchenn, who wrecked havoc on all of
Ireland, especially Emain Macha and Tara, until he was killed by Amairgin.[12] Perhaps simply two versions of the same
story, but together; they remind us of the dangers at this time of year and the
reasons why people would not venture out of their houses unless made to.
Other
stories tell us that at this time of the year, Dagda and Morrigan met at a ford
in a river and had intercourse while straddling the river. Dagda was also supposed to have mated with
Boann and an unnamed daughter of the Druid Indech.[13] A very busy and pleasurable time for
him! But he wasn't the only one busy at
this time. Cú Chulainn met with women
from the Otherworld at this time and this was when the swan maiden, Cáer, met
with Angus Óg and flew off together in swan form.
We
find that Samhain was also the time of the year when the Formorians extracted
their tribute from the people of Ireland.
Each year, the people were forced to give the Formorians two-thirds of
their corn, milk and children. There is
a poem in the Dindsenchas that tells
us how at this time of year, children were sacrificed to Corm Cruet at Mag
Sleuth in County Cavern.[14] The purpose of this sacrifice was to ensure
the supply of milk and corn. Again,
this may simply be two versions of the same story. Or, this may be a remnant of the culling from the herds of the
animals that couldn't be kept through the winter months, transposed through
Christian writers to be a sacrifice of children.
Another
interesting relic of the sacrificial aspect of the holiday can be found on the
Isle of Lewis in the Herbrides. Up to
modern times, the people would gather on the shore and one person would wade
out to give an offering of ale to Shoney, the god of the sea, to enrich their
fishing grounds for the coming year.[15]
Another
folk custom for Samhain is the piece of folk wisdom that says that any fruit
left on the trees was not to be eaten, but was to be left for the púcas or land
spirits. From Cork, we see the
procession of the 'White Mare' a group of young men walking the countryside,
led by a man wearing white robes and a horses head. The others would be blowing horns and they would visit houses to
get provisions for the celebrations.
Samhain
is also a time when divination is prominently featured. Usually it was divination to see whom your
future husband or wife would be, but it could be done for any reason. One way to see the future was to pour hot
lead or wax onto water and divine from the shapes formed. Other methods featured apples, nuts, usually
hazelnuts, beans, snails and candles.
Bobbing for apples is a reminder of this form of divination.
Of
course, the Roman Catholic Church tried to Christianize Samhain in the seventh
century by making November 1st "All Saints Day," and the night of
October 31st "All Hallows Eve" in tribute to the saints of the
past. Again, it was in veneration of
the dead. The Church had some problems
with assimilating this celebration into its religious agenda because of
prevailing pagan influences at the time, so it was banned from their calendar
altogether in the mid 1100's and was not reinstated again until 1928, when the
Church felt confident that the pagan belief systems were no longer a threat. The Church by then had assumed that the old
pagan associations with the holiday were at last forgotten ... perhaps a
premature supposition?[16]
An
ancient ritual practiced to this day by some groups, including ours, involves
calling the departed from this realm to help them resolve whatever holds them
to the lower astral plane, and to find solace and guidance along their trek
through reincarnation. The
jack-o-lantern was used in times past as a beacon to the dead. Originally carved from a turnip, in the
British Isles - here it would be called a rutabaga; today we use the pumpkin to
fill this role. Restless souls were
summoned to "come to the light" by participants in the ceremony. Everyone wore black to represent the fragile
veil between the dusk and the dawn, the living and the dead. An apple was passed slowly around the circle
and cloves were inserted into the fruit to represent each departed spirit being
guided to the light and to allow the ritual participants a chance to put to
rest anything they had troubling them. The
ritual itself is very beautiful, loving, and emotionally spellbinding.
If
you are interested in trying to carve a jack-o-lantern from a rutabaga, check
out the instructions online at: http://www.toad.net/~sticker/turnip.html. It's a good site with easy to follow
instructions. Another custom from
Ireland is making a Samhain Parshell or Samhain Cross. There are good instructions online at http://www.toad.net/~sticker/parshal.html. A very good web site that is full of other
Samhain customs, including several good recipes for Samhain foods, games,
folklore and interesting tidbits of information, is located at: http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/~bj333/HomePage.season.html#samhain.
Muin Mound Grove
Calendar of Events
|
Event |
Date |
Time |
Comments |
|
Business Meeting |
10/28/00 |
5:00 PM |
Normal business |
|
Samhain Ritual |
10/28/00 |
8:00 PM |
Dress for the weather and
please bring a dish to share for the potluck and some canned food for our
food drive. |
|
Business Meeting |
11/19/00 |
1:00 PM |
Normal business *NOTE CHANGE TO WINTER HOURS* |
|
Business Meeting |
12/16/00 |
3:00 PM |
Normal business |
|
Yule Ritual |
12/16/00 |
6:00 PM |
Dress for the weather and
please bring a dish to share for the potluck and some canned food for our
food drive. |
|
OTHER EVENTS |
|||
|
Winterstar |
2/25 /00 to 2/27/00 |
|
Located in Delroy, OH at
the Atwood Lake resort, this is a great winter break put on by ACE, the
people who bring you Starwood. For
more info, go to http://www.rosencomet.com/
|
As
always, we welcome your contributions: stories, articles, artwork,
poems...whatever your creativity brings to mind. You can get them to us by mailing to MUIN MOUND GROVE, ADF, 7188
Minoa Bridgeport Road, East Syracuse, NY 13057-9601 or via e-mail at sellison@twcny.rr.com (preferred
method). Up to the minute information
about the Grove can always be found on our web site at: http://home.twcny.rr.com/muinmoundgrove. The Grove has an email group established at
E-groups. To subscribe, go to
egroups.com and subscribe to the MuinMoundGroveADF list.
Need to contact the Grove
directly? For more information, call
656-8681.
How To Dress
Yourself For Outdoor Winter Rituals
By Keith "Rhino" Veeder
- zenpagan@usa.net
It
has been brought to my attention, and I have noticed it myself. During outside rituals, by the time the
toasting and boasting has begun, most of the Grove is shivering. I have been asked to share something that I
learned from 12 years involved in the Scouting program. Dressing in layers.
I
admit I don't do it as much as I should myself, but then I have lots of
insulation (fat) to keep myself warm.
Not everyone has been equipped for cold weather naturally as well as I
have. This is where I come in, and
share what I learned the hard way from various Boy Scout leaders.
Layer
one is long underwear, maybe a sweatshirt and sweat pants. The second layer is a t-shirt. What about the legs you ask? Simple.
Leave the blue jeans at home, and wear some normal pants. When denim gets wet, life becomes miserable
if you're outdoors for any long period of time. The third layer is a thick sweatshirt. The fourth layer is a sweater, wool if you have one. Over all this, you wear whatever jacket you
prefer.
But
Keith, all those layers! I'll
sweat! Perhaps, but here come the two
beautiful features of the layers technique.
One, if you get too warm take off a layer. Second, the layers trap a pocket of air between each layer. You will be amazed at how warm you stay even
without the jacket.
Now
a few details to add. If you have room
in your boots (leave the sneakers home), wear at least two pair of socks. If you have wool socks, one pair may be
enough. Women should consider adding a
slip or camisole as an extra layer.
Also if you have stockings or pantyhose, all the better.
One
last thing. WEAR A HAT! At least eighty percent of your body heat
leaks out the top of your head. My dad
wears a hat to bed in the winter. It
helps to keep your ears warm too.
IN THE LEAVES
(By damiana blume)
